Warp knitting machine



Jan. 11, 1955 A. ZWINGENBERGER WARP KNITTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 21, 1955 .WARP KNITTING -MACH1NE *Al'no'a Zwingenberger, Obertshausen, .near "Offenbach 2 (Main), Germany, assignor to Karl Liebrandt, Ober- Zklingensporn, near .Naila, Germany -Application January 21, 1953, Serial No. 332,356

.1 :2 Claims; .(Cl. 66'.-86)

tMy invention; relates .to:-high-.speed warp knitting machines and particularly to the cammechanisms for actuating;.the;various reciprocating loop-forming-devices in such a machine.

.1 01. increasing thespeed and quietness of operation as well asthe useful life of .suchmachines, the cam mechanisms for driving the knitting .tools are usually disposed .within apartly oil-filled housing so that the gear mechanismszare always sufficiently lubricated either by dipping :into .the oil, or by :a circulatory .or drip lubrication, or by means of an oil :mist produced by-squirting or atomiz- :ing nozzles. It hasbeen 'ditficult, however, to safely protect the knitted fabric fromwbeingafiected by. oil escaping from the mechanism, the-danger. of soiling the fabric being. especially :aggravatedwith machines of high operatingspeed.

Relating to such machines, it is an object of my invention to securely prevent, even at maximum operating speeds, any-escape .ofwlubricant from the cam gear housing while nevertheless-permitting aneflicient transfer of driving motion from the enclosed cam mechanism to the exteriorly-locatedneedle.bars, sinker plates and other tool means that are to be reciprocated for performing the knitting operation.

Another o'bject of .my...invention is to lubricate the exteriorlyelocatedlink-pivots of the knitting tool devices by supplying these pivots'with oil from the interior of the housing of the cam mechanism. =1 To. achieve these objects and according to a-feature of my invention, the reciprocating connecting rods for transmitting the driving motion from the enclosed cam mechanisms to the knitting tools pass through respective openings in the wall of the mechanism housing at a place located above the oil level in the housing, and the openings in the housing wall are sealed by flexible ring or sleeve-shaped diaphragms joined with each connecting rod and with the housing wall.

According to another feature of my invention, the connecting rods are hollow and each includes a turnbuckle device for adjusting the effective length of the rod. The turn-buckle device hasa central passage or bore, thus connecting the interior of the oil-containing housing with the remote linkage pivot between the rod and the lever or other part to be driven.

These and more specific features of the invention will be apparent from the following description in conjunction with the embodiment exemplified by the drawings, in which- Fig. 1 shows a partial and part-sectional side view of a warp knitting machine according to the invention;

Fig. 2 shows separately one of the connecting rods of the machine; and

Fig. 3 shows a part-sectional top view of the gear housing of the same machine.

The knitting tools of the illustrated machine consist essentially of knock-over bits or sinker plates such as the one shown at 1, a set of spring-beard needles of which one is shown at 2, a pair of eye needles 3 and 4 for each beard needle, and a presser 5 for periodically closing the spring beard during the loop-forming operation. It will be understood that, as conventional in such machines, a large number of spring beard needles 2, sinker plates 1 and eye needles 3, 4 are arranged in respective rows that extend longitudinally of the machine, that is, perpendicularly to the plane of illustration in Fig. 1. All sinker plates 1 of the row are mounted sp'ective carrier levers .beam or bracing structure.

2,699,052 Patented Jan. 11, 1955 2 on two longitudinal bars 1a and 1b. The beard needles 2 are all mounted on a longitudinal needlebarZa; The

eye needles 3 and 4. are all mounted on respectivelongitudinal bars 3a. and 4a. Similarly, the pressers are mounted ona. common longitudinal-bar 5a. These different bars are secured to respective carrier levers 6, 7,, .8, 9 and 10. The carrier levers are rotatably disposed on shafts 11, 12, 13 and are equipped with extensions 6a, 7a, 8a, 10a. Linked to these extensions are connecting rods 14 that extend into a. gear housing 15. A drive shaft 16 extending through the gear housing 15 carries a number of control-cams 17 which cooperate with cam follower members 18 pivotally mounted on a .shaft 18 parallel andeccentric to the cam shaft 16. The cam follower members 18, are linked to the respective connecting rods 14 toimpart reciprocating motion to the reand the knitting. tools mounted thereon.

, As far as further details (not pertaining to thepresent invention) of the above-described machine components are concerned, reference may be had, if desired, to my copending applicationSerialNo. 332,355, filed January 2 1, 1953, now Patent No. 2,686,409.

. The gear housing 15 for the cammechanism extends longitudinally of the machine and is carried by the supporting frame 20 of the machine. Thehousing mayalso form an integral part of, the supporting frame structure so that it has essentially the function of a longitudinal The housing is filled with oil up to the level 19. The cam shaft 16, driven from an electric motor16', extends .longitudinally through the housing and is journalled in bearings 21. Also disposed in the housing are bearings 22 for. thepivot shaft 18' of theeccentric cam follower members 18. The housing 15 is covered by a lid 15'. The longitudinal and verticalhousing .wall 26 facing the side of the knitting tools has an opening 23 above the oil level 19 for the passage of the respective connecting rods 14. Each opening 23 is sealed toward the outside by means of a diaphragm consisting of an annular ,disc or sleeve 24. The dia- ,phragm sleeves 24 have one end 25 tightly surrounding side of the housing wall '26v so. that splashes of oil or oil mist can nowhere escape from housing 15.

The cams 17 and the cam follower members 18 are partly immersed in the oil. Consequently, the oil will always reach and lubricate the cam rollers 27 and 28, thus securing a reliable lubrication of the entire cam mechanism. Instead of providing the illustrated splash lubrication, the mechanism may also be lubricated by circulation or drip lubrication, or by an oil mist produced by ejector or atomizing nozzles connected to a correspondingly powerful oil pump. Regardless of the type of lubrication, the amounts of oil draining from the lubricated parts always collect at the bottom of the housing 15 without any losses and without danger of soiling the fabric being knitted.

The cam mechanisms may be given any desired design. Preferably, and as illustrated, the eccentrically-pivoted cam follower members 18 are designed as bell crank levers. Each of them has two cam rollers 27 and 28 mounted near the ends of its two angle legs so that the two rollers jointly straddle part of the earns. 28 imparts to the connecting rod 14 and hence to the pertaining knitting tool a motion in one direction, while the actuation of the roller 27 causes movement of the connecting rod and knitting tool in the other direction. Two cam discs 17 and 17' may be provided for each individual follower member 18, one cam disc acting upon the cam roller 27 and the other disc acting upon the cam roller 28. This permits setting the starting moment of the forward stroke independently of the starting moment of the return stroke and vice versa.

The pivot points 30 at which the connecting rods 14 are linked with the respective follower members 18 are located at a larger height than the adjacent cam rollers 28 of the follower members. This permits keeping the cam projections 29 of the cam disc 17 as low as possible. As a result, the wear imposed upon the cams is mini- The roller mized, thus increasing the useful life of the machine and improving its quietness of operation.

For adjusting the knitting tools, the machine is equipped with adjusting devices 31 which form part of the respective connecting rods and are designed in the manner of a turn buckle. These devices comprise a tensioning bolt 32 whose two halves have screw threads of mutually opposed thread inclinations which are screwed into the adjacent parts of the connecting rod, thus joining these two parts to a rod structure whose length can be varied by turn-buckle action.

As apparent from Fig. 2, the part 14]) of the connecting rod 14 linked to the lower end of the carrier lever 7a is tubular and so is the rod part 14a linked to the cam follower member 18. The two tubular parts 14a and 14b have an inner thread by means of which they are interconnected by the screw bolt 32 of the turn-buckle device. Two counternuts 33 and 34 on bolt 32 serve to tension and fasten the bolt in the proper position relative to the rod parts 14a and 14b. The tensioning bolt 32 has a central bore 35. Consequently, the connecting rod structure as a whole forms a tubular conduit which joins the interior of the housing 15 with the pivot bearing 36 of the carrier lever 7a. The oil can thus pass from housing 15 through the bearing 30 and through the tubular rod structure to the pivot bearing 36, thereby providing a satisfactory lubrication of the driving pivots while safely passing the oil through those areas that may be reached by the knitted fabric.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon a study of this disclosure that machines according to my invention permit of various modifications and alternatives as regards details in design and components, without departing from the essential features of the invention and within the scope of the claims annexed hereto.

I claim:

1. A warp knitting machine, comprising a row of reciprocating knitting tool means, a framework supporting said knitting tool means, a rectangular housing extending longitudinally of said row, said housing being fixed to said framework for reenforcement thereof, a shaft extending longitudinally through said housing, cams mounted on said shaft in said housing, cam followers disposed in said housing and engaging said cams, said housing being partially filled with lubricant and said cams and said followers being partly immersed in the lubricant and being pivotally mounted in eccentric relation to said cam shaft, connecting rods linked in said housing with said respective followers and linked outside said housing with said respective tool means, said rods extending out of said housing at places spaced upwardly from the lubricant level, said housing having wall openings traversed by said rods above said level, and flexible diaphragm members sealing said respective openings and being secured at one side to said respective rods and on the other side to the housing wall.

2. A warp knitting machine, comprising a row of reciprocating knitting tool means, a framework supporting said knitting tool means, a rectangular housing extending longitudinally of said row, said housing being fixed to said framework for reenforcement thereof, a shaft extending longitudinally through said housing, cams mounted on said shaft in said housing, cam followers disposed in said housing and engaging said cams, said housing being partially filled with lubricant and said cams and said followers being partly immersed in the lubricant and being pivotally mounted in eccentric relation to said cam shaft, connecting rods linked in said housing with said respective followers and linked outside said housing with said respective tool means, said rods extending out of said housing at places spaced upwardly from the lubricant level, said housing having wall openings traversed by said rods above said level, flexible diaphragm members sealing said respective openings and being secured at one side to said respective rods and on the other side to the housing wall, pivot bearings linking said respective connecting rods with said respective tool means, said connecting rods being hollow and forming a passage for lubricant from the interior of said housing to said respective bearings, said connecting rods including respective turn-buckle portions for adjusting the active length of each rod, and said portions having an axial duct which forms part of said passage.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,980,209 Kinsella et al Nov. 13, 1934 1,981,511 Kinsella et al. Nov. 20, 1934 2,143,609 Morton et al. Jan. 10, 1939 2,427,394 Eshleman Sept. 16, 1947 2,427,395 Kellog Sept. 16, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS 627,392 Germany Mar. 14, 1936 

